TITLE: The Morning AfterAuthor: MikeRating: PG-13Synopse: What happens the morning after? Well, read and find out. It is a POV but read and find out who's.Dedication: Dedicated to my muse and my sounding board, Livvie, aka Kelly. Yes, once in a while she plants evil seeds in my fertile mind just so she can watch things like this take root and grow.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Good…so good a feeling this was. Looking back to the bed, seeing the still form lying there, I smiled. Yes, it was a good evening. Looking at the table by the bed, I picked up the letter. Reading it over, the words…These words…Can’t believe I held the pen that wrote this.

Standing, I kept reading. Then I finally had to chuckle. Love, I thought, what did love ever get anybody? I tossed the letter and went to pour myself a whiskey.

"You know," I spoke aloud, "Last night, was wonderful. At first I didn’t think it could ever happen, but it did. I sooo need to thank you for that. It finally happened." I knocked the whiskey down and started to pour another then thought, What the hell, and drank from the bottle.

I walked back to the bed and looked down at the figure under the blankets. Reaching down, I gently touched the hair on the top of her head. Then I couldn’t help it, I laughed a deep laugh. I guess some would call in insane. Me, I call it honest.

"You thought you could save me, babe," I spoke after taking another pull from the bottle, "and you did. You freed me. Released me so I could feel again."

Putting the bottle down, I picked up the letter again. I got the lighter from the place where spare change, car keys, and wallet laid. I lit the lighter and put that tongue of flame to the bottom corner and watched it burn. I put it in the wastebasket by the night table.

Looking back down at the figure under those blankets, I took another drink and sat on the edge of the bed. "You were so hot last night. You did things I didn’t think...” I sighed as my voice trailed. "But as they say, a duck has to quack. A fish has to swim. And I’m one damn mean shark."

She starts to stir and as she does my true face comes to surface. Damn, it felt good. I put the bottle down again and lowered to kiss her ear, pulling her hair back. Smelling her and listening to that heart beat. Opening my mouth to take what is mine. I sink my fangs and sharp teeth into her flesh and drink deeply of that rich, hot fluid. Human blood, not some low creature. Well, okay, humans are low creatures but you know what I mean. Pig’s blood just doesn’t give the high and it tastes…bitter.

She gasps and struggles, but those struggles are in vein. Get it, ‘in vein’? Okay, bad joke even for me. Finally, when her heart was to that point, I pulled back. Licking the blood from my lips, I turned her over. Listen to that rattle in her shallow breathing. That’s called the death rattle. I cut my chest open just above my heart and pulled her up to me and put her mouth to the deep wound. When my blood touches her tongue she starts to feed. I closed my eyes as she fed and smiled.

Cordelia would rise again. She would be with me forever. Me, Angelus. How fitting a punishment for one that fought to keep me imprisoned for the past few years. I laughed again as I laid her back down when she was finished.

"See, this is what love gets you." I said, running a finger over my wound and then licking it clean.